BY JON R. LAFOLLETTE | STAFF WRITER
MISSION — Yariel Matute will take to the track this weekend at Alamo Stadium in San Antonio looking for what has eluded him so far this season — something to chase. The La Joya Juarez-Lincoln senior will compete in the 400-meter dash at the Class 6A regional track meet, where his speed will be tested among some of the state’s fastest.
“I’m looking forward to it,” Matute said. “I’m ready for the challenge. I haven’t really been tested that much this season in the Valley. I’m racing by myself a lot.”
According to Athletic.net, Matute’s time of 49.24 seconds in the 400 is the 10th fastest time in the state among 6A runners. The senior’s speed is also put to good use in the 400-meter and 1600-meter relays, where he serves as the team’s anchor. The Huskies’ relay teams have consistently dominated the competition this season and swept all three events at an area meet last week in Laredo.
Should Matute finish in the top-two in any of the three events, he’ll automatically qualify for the state competition later this month in Austin.
This is the most successful year for the Huskies under fourth-year boys coach Horacio Garza. After three years of what Garza calls, “laying the foundation,” the team won the District 30-6A championship earlier this month and came within four points of winning the area title as well. Though Juarez is loaded with talent, Matute is arguably the team’s greatest catalyst. But his presence on the team is the result of fortuitous timing.
Matute found himself in the weight room his junior year, conditioning himself for basketball season. He was working out on jumping boxes when Garza noticed him. Garza offered him a chance to compete in the long jump and triple jump, to which Matute agreed. However, he quickly grew bored jumping and the excessive downtime that came with it.
“I was at a JV meet at Mission Veterans (High School), and I was bored just sitting there watching everybody,” Matute said. “I asked coach to put me in the mile relay. I remember I was the second leg, and once I had the baton, we left everyone behind. I ran a 52 (second) split. I love the mile relay now and I love running the 400.”
Matute’s athleticism allowed for his speed and power, but that doesn’t mean track didn’t come without a learning curve. For Matute, learning the technical aspects of the sport proved a hindrance at first.
“It was weird getting used to the starting blocks because my body is so long,” he said. “But getting the blocks right helps cut so much time off your runs. It could be the difference between first and last.”
Though he’s comfortable with track’s customary starting position, he admits to still struggling with baton handoffs, which is one reason why he pulls anchor duty during relays.
“I have no idea why it’s so hard,” Matute says with a laugh. “I just gives me problems. And it’s important too. A good handoff is everything in a relay.”
Matute and his family moved to the Valley from Orlando in 2013. He says the change of scenery was easy since he already knew Spanish thanks to his Honduran-born mother.
“Things are different here, but in a good way,” Matute said. “A lot more people speak Spanish. I remember thinking how cool it was that my teachers taught in Spanish. It wasn’t hard to get used to the culture down here.”
The seamless transition made it easy for Matute to bond with his teammates, which in turn allowed him to be one of the leaders on the Huskies.
“He’s the type of guy that you know what you’re going to get every day, every practice every meet,” Garza said. “He hates losing, and he’s always trying to make himself and his teammates better. You can’t instill that kind of competitive spirit into someone. It’s something they have to want.”